H. M. Wormington

“ Here was found the body of a man interred with over six hundred articles, many of which show the most remarkable workmanship. They included pottery, beautiful baskets, fine turquoise mosaics, stone and shell ornaments, and hundreds of finely flaked arrowheads. This was of course an unusual burial, and many of the offerings were ceremonial objects such as would be placed in a grave only under extraordinary circumstances, but it gives some idea of the wealth of material which may yet be found and which will contribute to our knowledge of the ancient Pueblo culture. ”

“ For many, a good portion of this charm lies in the intangible presence of the “Ancient Ones”, the people who lived in these enchanted deserts and plateaus through many centuries. One can see the places where they lived and often one finds bits of pottery which show the immemorial striving for beauty of some long dead craftsman. ”

“ Even after Europeans arrived in the Southwest, the native culture was far from being completely submerged, and, while aboriginal progress was retarded, it was not entirely stopped. Since the first advent of white men in the Southwest until the present day, the Pueblos have fought what sometimes appears to be a losing battle against the encroachment of European, and later, of American culture. Actually the battle has not yet been entirely lost. We shall never know how the Pueblo people might have developed, and what heights they might have reached had they been left to their own devices. ”

“ Although the Southwest is possibly the best known area in America, we have barely scratched the surface and great discoveries lie ahead. For the present there are many gaps in our knowledge. Doubtless in many cases, data have been incorrectly interpreted. Archaeological opinions are by no means unanimous on all points. In the years to come, other archaeologists with greater knowledge and more refined techniques will reveal new pages of prehistory and re-interpret many of those which their predecessors have tried to decipher. ”

“ Once we pass on to a time which is separated from our own by hundreds instead of thousands of years we are on firmer ground. Two main basic cultures have been differentiated by archaeologists and it now seems probable that two more may be recognized. The best known and the first to be considered is often called the Anasazi. This is a Navajo name for the “ancient ones” and is applied to the prehistoric inhabitants of the plateau area of the Southwest which includes the drainages of the San Juan, Little Colorado, Rio Grande, Upper Gila and Salt Rivers, much of Utah and some of eastern Nevada. ”

“ The chief characteristic of the Cochise culture is the extensive use of grinding stones which suggests that the people were primarily dependent on the gathering of wild grains, nuts, roots, and similar foods. The finding of some split and burned animal bones in the sites where they lived indicates that they did hunt, but the lack of projectile points in the earliest period and their scarcity until the most recent phase provides additional evidence that the economy was based on food gathering rather than on hunting. ”

“ This tells us a great deal about the cultural relationships of ancient people, for trade implies contact between people which will affect other 13 phases of their culture. In prehistoric times, when people lacked rapid means of transportation and communication, human groups were naturally isolated as they can never be again, but even then cultural units were affected by the activities of the inhabitants of other regions. Accordingly, we cannot see the ancient life of the Southwest in true perspective if we do not know something of the inter-relations of the various cultures. ”

“ The records left by Spanish historians, who found the Pueblo Indians in the 16th century still untouched by European civilization and living essentially the same sort of life as their ancestors, have provided invaluable information. Also of great importance has been the work of ethnologists, scientists who analyze the culture of living primitive people. In the Southwest archaeologists are particularly fortunate, for in many 18 cases descendents of the prehistoric people whom they study are still living in the same general area and under very similar circumstances. ”

“ There are grave dangers inherent in too great a concentration on material culture. It has been said of the archaeologist that “sometimes he cannot see the people for the walls” [125] and it is the people themselves, after all, who are important.
Two examples will show how ethnology and archaeology may complement each other. In certain prehistoric sites are found circular underground rooms with highly specialized characteristics. ”

“ It may be asked, what possible information can be gained from ruins which would indicate a democratic way of life. In all the ruins which have been examined all the living quarters were essentially equal. Most anthropologists feel that had there been a marked differentiation between classes, or if all power had been lodged in the hands of a limited number of individuals this would have been reflected in the dwellings. Certain leaders and priests undoubtedly had authority, as they do among the Pueblo Indians of today, but there is no evidence of an autocracy or a ruling class. ”

“ Douglass had learned that the tree-rings over a period of years formed a distinct pattern which could be recognized when found on most conifers. Next he began to search for trees which had been cut perhaps many years before, but which contained a pattern which fitted some early portion of that tree whose cutting date was known. This led him to beams made from whole logs which have been a characteristic feature of Southwestern architecture for many centuries. By finding old beams whose outer rings formed the same pattern as the inner rings of living trees the known chronology was increased. ”

“ No material has been found which may be attributed to a pre-ceramic period, unless the Cochise culture proves to be ancestral to the Hohokam. Pottery is found in even the earliest Pioneer levels. The Hohokam did not have any corrugated pottery. All their wares were smooth and were produced by the paddle-and-anvil technique. When this method is used to shape and finish a piece of pottery, a round or mushroom-shaped object, known as an anvil, is held inside the vessel to receive the force of the blow, while the exterior is struck with a wooden paddle. ”

“ There can be no doubt that the need for defense was taken into consideration in the building of the big structures, but this cannot be the whole answer. There is some evidence of violence, but not a great deal. The utmost care was taken in the construction of the great houses, and much time-consuming work went into decoration. When danger threatens, speed becomes the primary consideration, and the amenities of life are sacrificed. There were many small houses in which a good portion of the population lived, and these were not always in locations suitable for defense. ”

“ When the men were not working in the fields or hunting on the mesa tops, they must have spent much time in their kivas, which may have served as habitations for the unmarried men and general meeting places, as well as providing a setting for the religious rites. While we cannot be sure what these ceremonies were, it seems certain that they were concerned with the well-being of the crops, which must be the first concern of all farmers, and that their form and content must have been greatly influenced by the ever present need of water which has always dominated life in the Southwest. ”

“ If the remains of one people are found underlying those of another, those on the bottom are older.
Rarely are the remains of many cultures found lying directly over each other in a complete series but through correlation between sites the sequence may be established. For example, if in one place we find remains of Culture A underlying those of Culture B and in another place find material from Culture B underlying that of Culture C we may postulate that C is more recent than A even though the two are not found together. ”

“ It is postulated that the Patayan or Yuman is a basic culture or root to which should be given the same status as the Anasazi and Hohokam.
A large population was found in this area when it was visited by Father Kino in 1700, and it is thought that there must have been a great concentration of population in this fertile valley and delta for a long time. In the lower basin of the Colorado River and in the desert area which adjoins it, has been found evidence of ancient people who worked in stone but did not make pottery. ”

“ Black-on-white pottery was the dominant ware and reached a high degree of excellence. The dead were usually buried under house floors. Cranial deformation was widely practiced. The Mimbres Valley was deserted in the middle of the twelfth century and we can only conjecture where the people who had inhabited it went.
As may readily be seen, the whole Mogollon problem appears to be very complex. This is always the case when a culture or an area is first investigated and the long job of studying it is in its initial stages. ”

“ Even from the earliest times the Hohokam appear to have cremated the dead, a practice which anthropologists always deprecate. These ancient people could hardly know how much they would inconvenience certain men in the twentieth century by their funerary habits, and undoubtedly they would not have cared. Bones and ashes are rarely found in the Pioneer period but some have been recovered from pits and trenches. The actual cremation is not believed to have taken place here. There were offerings of crushed burned pottery, and late in the period some stone objects were used. ”

“ The disappointment of the adventurers may well be imagined, for here was no city of gold, ready to yield its wealth to the invaders, but a community of simple farmers who, not only had no riches, but had little conception of the role that wealth could play in society. Later, Coronado moved 114 his forces to Tiguex on the Rio Grande, another Pueblo town. Trouble soon developed, and the Indians were massacred. The Spaniards then moved on to the Pueblo of Pecos, and there followed an expedition into the Plains as the search continued for the fabulous and mythical golden cities. ”

“ There are kivas too, however, and sometimes openly, sometimes secretly, the old rites are practiced and the old gods are worshiped. Houses may have windows and galvanized roofs, but basically the architecture is the same. There is some dissension in various villages, but in many there is still a remarkable group unity. On the surface, there is an ever growing tendency for the Pueblo Indians to become more like the white neighbors who surround them, but it would be naive to believe that the old culture has disappeared completely. ”

“ The invaluable tree-rings have not only provided us with dates for various events, but have given us information about climatic conditions which undoubtedly had a tremendous effect on the movements of the people with whom we are concerned. From tree-ring records we know that during the centuries when the hopes and fears of the prehistoric Pueblo Indians were centered on their crops there were bad years as well as good ones. We know of periods when rainfall was below normal, and of others when there were real droughts. ”